Hypodermic injection apparatus



G. N. HEIN, JR

HYPODERMIC INJECTION APPARATUS Feb. 2, 1954 2 Sheets-Sheet l Filed NOV.2O 1951 E hwell dNcl 4 Kami@ Feb. 2, 1954 G. N. HEIN, JR

HYPODERMIC INJECTION APPARATUS 2 sheets-sheet 2 Filed NOV. 20 ,Y 1951 aN Ru m mh/K R Nl m E (o 7 W5 w 1M W. u f7 E Y This Umm Patented Feb. 2,1954 En assmsir HYPOBERMI'U I'NJEc'rro APPARATUS:

George-.N..Hein, Jr., SanxCarlos; tJalim application Novembeezo, 195i,'serial' No. 257363* ioexaima. (ci. t28- mfr Tlifs invention relates toai hypodermic injection apparatus a'ndiii its specific aspects air'nstoprovde aV rneclianisnr of this character by means-of which medicamentmay` be hypoiei'nrieallSr` iii-- jec'ied' Without" the Use of" askin-penetrating' needle.

It. is an objectof theiinventlon to furnish an apparatus tliei parts ofmay readily, he vadjnsted and controlfedl sotfrat the pressure underwhich the medicament is ejected' isA variec'i'. Ac'- corrf'ngiv, thedept-r1 @1f-penetration of the tissue-s willbe correspondingly varied.

Ai further' Objectis that or' furnishing a. mech-anrsm which the volumeof the dosage-to be inie'cteclmayalso be varied at the will of' theoperato?.

Stillv` another object' isi that' of' providing ahypoderniic injectionapparatus' which; will include relatively few parts; each individuallysimple and` rugged in construction, such parts beingcapable ofx readyassemblage to furnish a Vunitaryv device'. operating over long periodsof time with freedom freinall difficulties;

' theseand other obj ects mincir;l reference is Iiadl to the attachedsheetsY of drawings illustrating one. practicalL embodiment.' or theinventionandin 'whicfra Y Fig. 1 is a sect'iional side view of threwapparatus and showingA the parts of the same adjusted to one' position;

*Fig 2 a similar view but sh'owing'the partssl'iiite to a dilleren'tvposition;

Fig, 3" is a sectional' plan View taken along. tlieline 3;--3 and v'inthe direction of the arrows as indicated in Eig. 4

Fig'. 45 is a transverse sectional' vievvv taken along the line 4-#4'and in the direction' of the'. arrows asindicated in Fig'. '3

Fig. 5 is a sectional plan view` of a fragmentV of thev operatingmechanism aridk taken along the` line 5--5 and in the direction of thearrows as indicate4 in Fig. 4;,

Fig. G-'is aside elevation of the apparatus; and

Fig'. T isa' fragmentary transverse view' taken along' the line- 1--1'and.v in thedirection of thev arrowsas' indica-ted i'n- Fig. I Y

In these views the numeral lli" indicates a casingA of' any desiredcongnration which hollow and toy thev forward end` of which an'extension or nose-piece fl' is secured, as for'examp-le-by screwthreads; The nose-piece is formed with a bore through- Wlich- 'a plungerl2' is projectible into' a medicament chamber; For purposesv hereinafterbroiiglit out this plunger-formed' with a passage I3. The medicamentchamber' may take one of numerous different forms. However, preferablyinstead of directly receiving' liquidc medicament it'v Will reeei've' anampule which conta-insv the desii'ed's'oiut-ion or-Iiqiiid Thus. theWailjls-ofthe-cifraniber-nraybe ygarovi'd'e'd` with a-lining F4"- oF 'szii'table material' suc-h as reihiber; The ampli-le will embrace-apreferablycupshaped' lzody Which-is taperedl an 'oi-i-tvv'a-rd dii"-rectionairrd-v identiiie by thenunreraf f5. body againv isconvenientlyformed off rub-Eier altliougliother materialsmig-ht be employed. Itsouterfend-is open and-dened by arelatively heavy hea-fi portion- H. A*nozzle isl provided Wliiclry includes a base Il preferably formed withaperipheralv` groove to receive the inwardbZI extending headirme theedgeof flange l G. Beyond-thistlie nozzle-is'iori-edt-Witha-plte-an-d;anoutwardly extending tipi-9 Which-is-provdecl with apassage 2li, eXtend'm-g; th-roiighout its length and tliebase il. To--sieciire' tlresepartsa-gainst' displacement a loading-cap'MLislemployedwliic'h is'formed-Witlr a centralaperture through-Wl-iclithe-projecting portion fs may extend. Conveniently; screw threadsor anyotlier-'suita-lo-le-form-csf-coupling arefurnished between theloading cap andy the extension H- in orderto provide-v forr aquick-detia-enabiecalming.

'Ine-rear end of: stem Ii-Z is` connected to orma-y be integral with anend wall l2I associated with acylinclrcal member 23.A The latter forms apart ofa r'vressure-acioninitiatorv structure; It' is closed atit'srear-end by a Body 245 Winchmay-lia-ve'screw threaded connectiontherewith; A nange 25 extends-'infvvartl-lyA from the ,cylindrical 2-3-and'i's disposed beyond an' expansiblemember 26 which has. itsbasefl'angeseoiirediagainst movementwith respect to th-easseinlcly;YWhile in certainl re*- spects il? iS preferred to utilize-an expansibl'emenibe'l: f Simple design, it will be"l understood that one` of numerousdifferent structures' might be employed' irl lieu of the UnitsDeca-lly'shown at 26.

The forwardZ faceoimem'ber T4 is' conveniently formed with et WGH-2'Tin'li'1`xe with the eXprisibileV member 26. Totherear of this Well;thebod-y of 'member-2Q is formed 'with cylinders- 28', 29-` and- 31?. YPassages; 3-1 and 3 2" areprovided betWeenth-e weirportiorr 211anden-incas zia-and ze respectively. Withinhore 28a piston 33` isdisposed; This piston may Forni- 'apart of" anV assembly' 35- whichincludes athriist hearing' 342 liooselycontacting outer part' of bearingis* a thread-ed stem 36- vvliiehL engages within acorrespondinglythreacle'd-opening'forri1ing a partV of' airv end cap ersecures to therear or casing ro. Stem at terminate in an irregular rearportion such as may conveniently mount the end of a crank (not shown).At a point short of portion 38 a split washer 39 or other part acting asan indicator, may be mounted.

Conveniently a sleeve 4|] is secured to or forms a part integral withcap 31. This sleeve is provided with a slot 4| adjacent which indiciaindicative of pressure may be disposed. As illustrated in Fig. 6 thisindicia may include graduation marks. In any event it will be apparentthat the edge of washer 39 or its equivalent will be visible through theslot 4l and in cooperation with the indicia will register the positionto which stem 36 has been projected or retracted. According to thisposition a corresponding pressure will exist within cylinder 28 in amanner hereinafter brought out.

Within the bore of cylinder 29 a piston 42 is disposed. This pistoninvolves an assembly again including an anti-friction bearing 43.Conveniently stem 44 may form an integral part of one of the elements ofthis bearing. In common with stem it has its threads bearing against thethreads or" an opening formed in cap 31 and is provided with a rearwardextension suitable for mounting a crank or wrench. Also, it convenientlymounts a split ring or other suitable indicating element. The lattermoves adjacent slot 45 formed in sleeve 40. That slot may have indiciadisposed adjacent it which identifies the dosage or volume of themedicament and marks which are indicative of fractions of the entiredosage.

While any suitable packing provision may be associated with pistons 33and 42 it is preferred that as shown they may be formed with grooveswithin which are disposed O-rings 48. Split washers 41 may be mounted ineach of the bores 28 and 29 adjacent their rear or entrance ends. Thesewashers in cooperation with the rear portions of the piston assemblieswill act as limit stops to prevent too great a retraction of thepistons. The forward ends of passages 3| and 32 preferably terminate ingrooves 49 extendingv across the base portion of well 21. These willprevent a freezing of the expansible member 26y into contact with thebase of the well surface in the event that such member in effectcompletely collapsed.

l The apparatus is provided with a lock struc-v ture to retain againstmovement the assembly of which tube 23 and member 24 form parts. Thelock structure cooperates with the bore of cylinder 39. It is apparentthat it might cooperate with other portions to achieve the desiredfu-nctions. one herein shown might be employed. However, it isdefinitely preferred that an assembly of mechanism of the general typeillustrated be utilized. Also, by having the lock extend into bore 30the device is rendered extremely compact.

Thus, the numeral 50 identifies a transversely shiftable pin which ispreferably supported by the thickened Walls which form a part of theextension or rearward sleeve49. This pin is provided with a notch 5I.-When the parts are in the positions shown in Fig. 5, this notch willpermit of a rotation of shaft 52 which is retained against axialdisplacement in any desired manner. The end of shaft 52 extends beyondthe body of the device and mounts an actuating arm or lever 53. Ashoulder 54 preferably forms a part of shaft 52 as shown in Fig. 2. Thisshoulder engages With pin 50 when the latter is in one extreme Also, alock structure different from the' position to prevent a rotation ofshaft 52. The shaft is notched or cut out to provide a. cam portion 55.The latter rides against the outer surface of a head 56 against whichthe outer end of a spring 51 may bear. That spring may in certaininstances be dispensed with. However, ordinarily such a. member shouldcooperate with the head to urge the latter outwardly.

The stem 58 is attached to head 55 and extends into the bore of aslotted spool assembly 59. Also disposed within that bore is a block ofrelatively soft rubber as indicated at 60 which has its outer edgesextending in the form of anA arc normally providing a continuation ofthe spool surfaces. Encircling block 5U isa sleeve 62 also preferably ofsoft rubber. This sleeve has its bore in engagement with the shank 6I ofthe spool as well as the sideedges of the block S9. Braking elements,preferably in the form of substantially semicircular shoes 63 of metal,encircle sleeve '52. A further set of rotatably oiset shoes 54 ofsimilar material encircle shoes 53. Rings of relatively hard rubber 65may be disposed-adjacent opposite ends of the assembly. Also if desired,rings of metal (not shown) may retain the parts of the assembly againstdisplacement with respect to each other.

As is apparent if pin 59 is shifted to a position at which its notch 5IVis in line with shoulder 54, then shaft 52 may be turned. Such turningis achieved by means of the actuating lever 53 or its equivalent. Whenturned from theY position shown in Fig. 5 to that illustrated forexample in Fig. 2, cam portion 55 will ride against' the upper end ofhead 56 thereby shifting rod or stern 58 inwardly of the spool bore. itwill serve to displace the core block 6U to expand portions of thelatter through the sides of the slit of the spool stem 6I intoengagement with the inner faces of sleeve 62. The latter will now beexpanded to correspondingly expand the shoes 63 and 64. This will causethe outer faces of the latter shoes to'frictionally engage with the faceof bore 30. So engaged the parts will be held against movement. Thiswill occur because the rear or outer end of spool 59 has threadedengagement with endV of cap 31 which is Y anchored against movement withrespect to casing i0.

In use it will be understood that with the parts in the position shownin Fig. l an ampule embracing an invertible rubber cup l5 may bepositioned within the medicament chamber after which the loading cap 2|lis applied to the nose piece of extension Il. As afore brought outampules of diverse characters may be utilized in lieu of the unitspecifically illustrated. In any,

medicament is to be administered under maximum pressures, then anoperator will shift pin 50 and rotate shaft 52 in orderV to preventmovements of member 24with respect to casing l 0. A

ratchet or crank will be mounted upon the rear- The latter will beturned.' until its piston 33 projeci'sv into bore 28 to amaxiend 38 ofstem 35.

So shiftedv extent:` so projected liquidi Within: that bore im advanceor the. piston. will. be. expelled` thloughpssage SEIT into thek body oftheA expan`- sible.- r'riernloerr 26. 'phat' liquid. may 'take one ofnumerous; different forms "cluding even a relatively heavy grease! or' oThe crank or ratchet Wilt bef dist-nbuntedt f om the rear' portion 38 ofstem 35 and Willf be' mounted upon the corlfes'pendin'gi portion of'stem'- is and turned to: rotate: the latter; Such rotation will' causepistoni 42" to: be projected themanner shown EigL- 3'. Such projectionwill also cause the liquid toi be expelledv througlipassage 32' intothe". expansible member;

AslA that' rneinherVT increases in'- capacity it will eXterrdi forgreater distances into the interior of tube. The latter being iilie'd'WithA gas under pifessureiitfollows that the body of gasr will be even:further" compressed Accordingly the gas Willi acti upon the louter face.of the expansible assembly ini an attempttourge theliduid Within thesame back into the bores of cylinders fis and 25;

Phe site of injection having been selected the oiii'ceV 2e of nozzle tipl's'if i's brought to a' point o'verlying'tliat site'. T'hat oricey mayhave a diameter of, for example, of .003""tov .0`12"". ln any event",if'the-` operator will' shiftpin 5tto a'positionv at whichI its notch5|' is i-ri line with the shoulder portion 525;, shaft"- ez" may berotated.. iiitli suchrotation' stem' or plunger 5s will be retracted.Such retraction will occur either incident-l to the' action of a springsuch as 57, or because of the natural resiliency of bloei: et and the:parts of the assembly associated therewith. In any event, the edges of'that block will not forciblyfb'ear against the'inner faces of the sleeve62'. Therefore, the expansive action on brake slices 63 and E245A willbe relieved. This will allow member 23 to project; Thespee'dY ofprojection will lbe controlled by the meteringeect' of the passagesl I3and 32. In' any event, plunger i2' vvillV actf against the base of theampule' and servev to expel medicament under pressures and at suchvelocities; through the' orice 20 that' the liquid will Vpiercetheepidermis' Without it being necessar'yto employ a skin-penetratingneedle.

According to the pressures employed the-depth of penetration will' be`more or less. As afore brought out the operative pressure may beregulated' by* the amount of projection of rod 3e and its piston 33'.When plunger i2 is fully projected, then piston assembly 3:25 will lieadjacent ring ci or its equivalent which will function as a stop for theparts. Likewise the volume of the injected'y dosage maybe varied bysimply projecting screw threaded' rod 4d to a greater or lesser' extent..The amountv of pressure and the volume of the dosage will be-4indicated throughy the slotsilii and 46. The desired results W-illat.`ailv times be achieved because of the interconnectiori provided` as aconsequence of the enclosure defined by! the expansible member 25, thewellportion 2l?, passages 3l and 32 and the position. of the pistons`within the cylinderv boresy 28 and 29'.y Piston 33' being unconnected tothreaded rou` eef it may move anyW-here's Witnin the range dened by thestopsproV-ided by' the inner end of cylinder bore 28 and rod 3S. On theother hand, piston d2 being connected to rod lill, it Will positivelyshift in axial direction with that rod.

With the device discharged, rod 36 is fully retracted by applying to itsportion 38 a suitable crank or wrench. Thereupon threaded rod or shaft.4t2 is` likewise turned tov retract piston ist. The assembly of thelatter contacting it?, cody 2t? and cylinder` 2'3' willi. be'positively' reel tract-ed. Thereupon` loadingcap 2li will` be'. disV`Y-mounted, the speri-t amp'ule may b'efremoved-andi discarded and a freshampule positioned Within. the medicament. chamber; Witn tneremounting ofcap 2|' the' entire procedure may.' again; be rea' peatedwitl'i' the op'erator! adj usting screws-1.36 and'` is to precisely the posi-tionswhichi will. assure an operating stroke and. pressniresly s'ucli as aredesired by thephysieian'inattendance;v

invention as specificallyaforenotedare achieved.

Obviously llilrilerotlsV Changes? CI'lS'tlCtiO and? rearrangement ofYthe parts. might be resorted'to Without departing' from' th'efspiritofthe tion asdein'edbythe clainis-L If claim:

l. A device' forhypo'dermically injectingmedice ement including incombination a casing prei vidi'ngar medicament chamber adjacent; oneYof# its ends, a' plunger projectibleinto said' chamber for expelling themedicament therefrom, sig-pres-`` sure accumulator assembly Within saidcasing operatively connected to said plu-nger" tocause projection of'tl-'ie same, saidI assembly comprising a body containing gas underpressure, a member expansibie into said bodyya of' liquid-containingcylinders connected t'o tl-ienterior'ot said member to' expandvthe-sameai'id pistons movableone within each or said cylinders' toEdispiaceliquid therefrom.

2. A device for hypodermically' injecting med-ic@ ardent including" incombination a cas-ing piro viding a medicament chamber' adjacent one ofits ends, a plunger projectibleinto-.saidchamber` for expelling themedicament therefrom, a pres-r sure accumulator assembly withinv said`casing operatively connected to said plunger toi cause projection of thesame, said assemblyy comprise" lng a body containing gas under'pressure,amem-f ber expansible into said body', a pair ofliquidl-r containingcylinders connected to the interior of said member to expandthe'same,pi`stonslmov= able one within' each of said cylinders-todisplaceY liquid. therefrom' and means forv indicating' the positionassumedl bys'a'id pistons withinsaid' cyl@ inders. l

3. A device for hypodermically injectingrnedic-v amenti including inAcombination aV casing? pro'-i Viding a medicament chamber adjacent oneo'i'f' its ends', a plunger projectibl'e into said chamber for expellingthe medicament therefrom, a pressure `accumulator assembly' Within said'casing operatively connected to said" plunger to cause projection of thesame, said assembly comprising a body containing gas under pressure, amember expansible into said body, a-p'air ofy liquidi-convltainingcylinders connected tothe' in'terior'of said member to expand the same,pistons movable one Within each of said? cylinders to displace liquidtherefrom, means forindicating the positionas sume'd by saidpistons'fwithin' said cylinders.

4. A device for' hypodermically `injecting me# dicament including incombination a casingp'ro#r vidin'g a medicament'- chamber adjacent oneof its ends', va plunger projectible into' said chamber for expellingthe medicament'therefrom', a pressure accumulator assembly Within saidcasing operatively connected to Said plunger to cause projection of thesame, said assembly comprising a body containing gas under pressure, amember expansible into said body, a pair of liquid-containing cylindersconnected to the interior of said 7 member to expand the same, pistonsmovable one Within each of said cylinders to displace liquid therefrom,means for indicating the position assumed by said pistons within saidcylinders, and releasable lock means connected to said cylinders torestrain movements of the plunger.

5. A device for hypodermically injecting medicament including incombination a casing providing a medicament chamber adjacent one of itsends, a plunger proj ectible into said chamber for expelling themedicament therefrom, a pressure accumulator assembly Within said casingoperatively connected to said plunger to cause projection of the same,said assembly comprising a body containing gas under pressure, a memberexpansible into said body, a pair of liquid-comY taining cylindersconnected to the interior of said member to expand the same, pistonsmovable one Within each of said cylinders to. displace liquid therefrom,means for indicating the position assumed 'by said pistons Within saidcylin-l ders, a further cylinder movable with said pair f cylinders, andexpansible lock means disposed with said further cylinder to engage thebore of the same and prevent a movement o all of said cylinders and saidplunger and means Whereby.

said lock means may be freed from engaging the face of said bore.

6. A device for hypodermically injecting rnedicament including incombination a casing providing a medicament chamber adjacent one of itsends, a plunger projectible into said chamber for expelling themedicament therefrom, a tube connected tosaid plunger and adapted tohave its interior lled with gas under pressure, a member connected tomove with such tube, a member expansible into said tube and mounted bysaid member, said rst named member being formed With a pair of cylindersconnected by passages with the space deined by said member and pistonsdisposed one within each of said cylinders for displacing liquidtherefrom into the interior of said expansible member.

7. A device for hypodermically injecting medicament including incombination a casing providing a medicament chamber adjacent one of itsends, a plunger projectible into said chamber s for expelling themedicament therefrom, a tube connected to said plunger and adapted tohave its interior lled with gas under pressure, a member connected tomove with such tube, a member expansible into said tube and mounted bysaid member, said rst named member being formed 4 with a pair ofcylinders connected by passages with the space defined by said member,pistons disposed one within each of said cylinders for displacing liquidtherefrom into the interior of said expansible member, said body beingformed with a. further cylinder and releasable lock means extending intothe bore of said further cylinder.

8. AV device for hypodermically injecting medicament including incombination a casing providing a medicament chamber adjacent one of itsends, a plunger projectible into said chamber for expelling themedicament therefrom, a tube connected to said plunger and adapted tohave its interior filled with gas under pressure, a member connected tomove with such tube, a member member, said first named member beingformed with a pair of cylinders connectedrby passages with the spacedefined by said member, pistons disposed one within each of saidcylinders for displacing liquid therefrom into the interior of saidexpansible member and means for individually projecting said pistons.

9. A device for hypodermically injecting merdicament including incombination a casing providing a medicament chamber adjacent one of itsends, a plunger projectible into said chamber for expelling themedicament therefrom, a tube connected to said plunger and adapted tohave its interior lled with gas under pressure, a member connected tomove with such tube, a member expansible into said tube and mounted bysaid member, said rst named member being formed with a pair of cylindersconnected by passages with the space defined by said member, pistonsdisposed one within each of said cylinders for displacing liquidtherefrom into the interior of said expansible member, means forindividually projecting said pistons and means associated with saidprojecting means for indicating the position assumedy by each of saidpistons Within said cylinders.

10. A device for hypodermically injecting medicament including incombination a casing providing a medicament chamber adjacent one of itsends, a plunger projectible into said chamber for expelling themedicament therefrom, a tube connected to said plunger and adapted tohave its interior lled with gas under pressure, a member connected tomove with such tube, a

member expansible into said tube and mounted' further cylinder to lockall of said cylindersl against movement and'means shiftable to effect adisplacement of said material and a return cf same to an initialposition. GEORGE N. HEIN, JR.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS NumberName Date 2,380,534 Lockhart VJuly 31, 1945 OTHER REFERENCES Amanuscript doctors thesis: Local Inf`1ltra.`

tion of Tissues from a Machine Designed to Deliver High Pressure, HighVelocity Jets of Fluid, by John F. Roberts. The manuscript is in a-bound volume in the Medical Library of Columbia University, College ofPhysicians and Surgeons 630 West 168th St., New York, New York. Catalognumber R747.C7/C73/l935. The volume is open to inspection by personsgranted the privilege of use of the Library and is available oninterlibrary loan. (A copy is in Division of the Patent Oce.)

